Islam in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
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History
Pre-colonial and colonial periods
With the expansion of
The independence of the Congo in 1960 brought greater religious tolerance and allowed the Muslim community to organise publicly for the first time.
Post-colonial period
Today, Islam is a major religion within the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is particularly prominent in the east of the country where it has been present since the 18th century. The highest concentration of Muslims is in Maniema Province and especially its cities of Kasongo and Kindu where they represent 80–90 percent and 25 percent of the population respectively. The second largest concentration of Muslims is in Kisangani where they make up 15 percent of the population.[1] Besides indigenous Muslims, the population also includes recent immigrants from Lebanon, India, Pakistan and other parts of the African continent.
Congolese Muslims are represented at a national level by the Islamic Community of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Communauté islamique du République démocratique du Congo, or Comico) which succeeded the Islamic Community of Zaire (Communauté islamique du Zaïre, Comiza) founded in the 1970s. However, the religion has little political influence in national politics and are underrepresented in its institutions. In the 2006 general elections, just four Muslims deputies and three senators were elected out of 500 and 108 respectively.[5]
Violence between Muslims and other religious groups in the Congo, especially Congolese Christians, has been attested in North Kivu since 2014 in connection with the Allied Democratic Forces insurgency which originated in neighbouring Uganda.[6] The Allied Democratic Forces, whose political ideology is based on Islamism, is widely suspected of having perpetrated the Beni massacre in August 2016. It was reported in 2019 that the Pakistani contingent of the United Nations MONUSCO force was reported to have financed the construction of new mosques in the region, contributing to an "islamisation" of Eastern Congo.[4]
Religious affiliations
The vast majority of Muslims in the Democratic Republic of the Congo identify themselves as
Numbers
Recent estimates of the proportion of the Congolese population who self-identify as Muslim vary considerably and range between approximately one and 10 percent. According to the political scientist
Notable people
See also
- Islam in Africa
- Religion in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Christianity in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Leinweber 2012.
- ^ https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.1515/9783110541441-008/html
- ISSN 0803-0685.
- ^ a b Braeckman 2019.
- ^ Battory & Vircoulon 2017, p. 6.
- ^ "Villages 'obliterated' as Christian persecution grows in eastern Congo". The Catholic Herald. 19 Aug 2016. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
- ^ "The World's Muslims: Unity and Diversity" (PDF). Pew Research Center. 9 August 2012. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 14 August 2012.
- ^ "Islam and Christianity in Sub-Saharan Africa" (PDF). Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2016.
- ^ "Mapping the Global Muslim Population: A Report on the Size and Distribution of the World's Muslim Population" (PDF). Pew Research Center. October 2009. p. 30. Archived from the original (PDF) on 19 June 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2016.
- ^ International Religious Freedom Report for 2015 Congo, Democratic Republic of the
- ^ "Congo, Democratic Republic of the". CIA World Factbook. Retrieved 21 May 2021.
Bibliography
- Leinweber, Ashley E. (2012). "The Muslim Minority of the Democratic Republic of Congo: From Historic Marginalization and Internal Division to Collective Action". Cahiers d'études africaines. 2 (206–7): 517–44.
- Battory, Jean; Vircoulon, Thierry (February 2017). "L'islam radicale en République démocratique du Congo: Entre mythe et manipulation'" (PDF). Notes de l'Ifri. Institut français des relations internationales. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
- Braeckman, Colette (7 December 2019). "L'Est du Congo, nouvelle cible du combat djihadiste?". Le Carnet de Colette Braeckman. Le Soir. Retrieved 17 December 2019.
Further reading
- Luffin, Xavier (2014). "Le "danger musulman" au Congo belge et au Ruanda-Urundi". Cahiers du CIERL. 4: 11–18.
External links
Media related to Islam in the Democratic Republic of the Congo at Wikimedia Commons